


Shades of Draenor: Pride

by Cazadora, Shaliara



Series: A path of sun and bones [5]
Category: Warcraft - All Media Types, World of Warcraft
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Death Knight, Draenor, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Gen, M/M, Priest, Warcraft Lore, World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-28
Updated: 2020-10-28
Packaged: 2021-03-07 22:35:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,531
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26961505
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cazadora/pseuds/Cazadora, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shaliara/pseuds/Shaliara
Summary: "Maybe I lost because you're attractive and I got distracted!"(Set approximately 9 months into the Draenor Campaign)
Relationships: Female Blood Elf | Elves/Male Blood Elf | Elves (Warcraft), Female Undead & Male Undead (Warcraft), Junre/Kalethis Moonspear, Junre/Nyquist Duskfeather (past), Male Blood Elf | Elves/Male Blood Elf | Elves (Warcraft)
Series: A path of sun and bones [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1542976
Kudos: 3





	Shades of Draenor: Pride

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to Laireshi for her beta <3

It had been hard making sure the priest went to sleep. In the end he had to speak to his apprentice--Lena--who immediately agreed. It had been three days since they got back from Blackrock Foundry, and the trip, the wounded, and Akers' sudden disappearance were taking their toll on Kalethis; the priest behavior grew erratic. 

The plan was actually a bit simple and ridiculous, as she told Kalethis they needed help with a new patient who was in the farthest bed. The zone was almost in shadows and, even though Kalethis put on a weird expression, he commited. 

When he got near though, Junre got out of the bed and grabbed the shocked priest by the arm. 

"You're now going to sleep". 

Kalethis shot a confused look to Junre and then to Lena, that only shrugged smiling… but did nothing. 

Junre led Kalethis to a private room in the infirmary where Lena said he could sleep at and then stood by the door, blocking the exit. He shot the priest a pointed look. 

"Sleep." 

"But--"

"No buts, sleep," interrupted Junre, a stern look on his face. "Lena said she could take it from here, given she _already slept_ and is fresh." 

Kalethis opened his mouth to answer and closed it again. Probably he didn't have a proper reply. 

"OK, then," he just said. And turned back to go inside, for the bed. Junre thought he saw a faint smile, a glint in the eyes of Kalethis, like a secret. 

He closed the curtain that served as a door and stood by it for a while. He didn't go to his own bed until he made sure he heard Kalethis' tranquil breathing, asleep at last. 

Now, the next morning, he watched Kalethis getting out of the infirmary and he looked way better than the day before. So, one long night sleeping was what he'd needed after all. 

Junre stopped the exercise and let the wooden sword fall, its point touching the snow. He made a stop signal to Derek, who was sparring with him. 

"I need to check something I'm curious about," he said to Derek, and his eyes still hadn't left Kalethis in the distance. 

Derek followed his gaze, his yellow eyes inquiring. 

"Of course, be my guest. But I thought you might like your affairs private, you don't seem like.." 

Junre didn't even reply and made his way until he crossed his path with Kalethis. 

"You're better, it shows," he told the priest, who stopped and greeted him with a smile. 

"You both didn't give me any chance. Lena is stubborn enough alone and I see I won't win against you either." He shrugged. "Anyway, thank you, I really needed to rest and I can be a bit…" He made a movement with his hands and trailed off. 

Junre chuckled. 

"Speaking about winning and seeing you're fresh now, I would like to see what you can do there." He pointed at the training zone. Derek was still there striking one of the wooden training posts with his swords, among a couple of people more. 

Kalethis looked at Derek, then at Junre, with a questioning look. 

"You want to test me in… combat" 

"Yes. Your fight against the goren at Blackrock Foundry… I would like you to fight against me, so I can judge better. No magic, just a simple fight." 

Kalethis shot him a confused look, and then it was like he was suddenly aware of how Junre was dressing, dirty, some recent bruises, no shirt, and only his breeches and boots. Junre thought he saw him blush. 

"Hum…"

"Don't worry," Junre added, and smiled reassuringly. "I will not go hard against you, of course."

Kalethis smiled nervously but nodded to Junre and followed him to the training zone. 

He saw Derek smirk and whistle mockingly when they approached. Junre rolled his eyes and Kalethis pointedly ignored it. 

Junre picked up a wooden staff from the weapon rack and threw it to the priest, who caught it in a swift motion and made a few skillful moves. He nodded approvingly. 

Junre positioned himself in one of the empty arena spaces that had been cleared out of snow and motioned for Kalethis to do so. 

Junre moved fast and charged, and he seemed like he took the priest by surprise but he was the actually surprised one when Kalethis parried his sword with the staff, pushing it aside, and got out of his way. 

Junre arched his eyebrows and nodded, approving. Kalethis shot him a smug smile. 

"You thought you would catch me with that?" He made a tsk sound with his tongue and sounded actually cocky. "You offend me, Junre." 

"Ok, I won't restrain that much, given you're… _that skilled_ , Kale," Junre answered ironically. The priest wants action? Fine, then. 

But this time it was Kalethis who attacked, swiftly, and Junre didn't see him coming. The priest struck him on the side, without Junre having time to react, or even get near. He feigned being hurt and shot Kale a surprised, but appreciative nonetheless look. 

That made Kalethis chuckle and go at it again. 

Some people were gathering around them, curious looks in their eyes. Junre saw Derek had stopped too and he was saying something to another undead woman beside him and both laughed. He even heard Hakani shout for more to come and see. 

The exchange went on and on for a bit and Junre was starting to get tired of being on the receiving end. Kalethis used the staff with precision, striking hard and relentless. He was just as efficient as he was when healing. Junre was having a hard time trying to follow him, given he was apparently faster than him with his weapon of choice. 

Oh, was he a good fighter for a priest, Junre had to admit it. He had managed to land some strikes on Kalethis but the majority of them had missed, either deflected or parried by the staff. And given the staff's length he didn't even manage to get near the priest for a good strike. Kalethis was fast and Junre was having mixed feelings between being annoyed and gladly surprised. 

People around them cheered every single time they managed to strike each other, even though right now most of the strikes were Kalethis'. They were now face to face, and Junre saw the priest smile at him, fierce, breathing hard. He was enjoying it. He smiled too, and thought it had been a while since he had fun like this. 

And it took some more bruises, but he started to see the priest's patterns, his strategies, and the terms started to change. He started to adapt and improvise and then he managed to counterattack and overcome most of Kalethis' strikes now, because, even when his sword was considerably slower than the staff, he could now foresee Kalethis' movements. He was taking back the control of the fight. 

_Like it should be_ , he thought, because he had felt a bit hurt. 

They kept on sparring and, unlike Junre, Kalethis began to show signs of getting tired. Junre had started to actively attack by now and Kalethis was having difficulties parrying his attacks. He didn't make any attempt to stop though, and Junre admired him for it. He was gonna cut it short, though, he didn't want the priest to get tired and distracted and get hurt. He was satisfied with what he'd already seen. 

In fact, now in control, Junre looked again at Kalethis, open shirt, sweaty, breathless, and thought about something he hadn't considered for a while...

His thoughts were interrupted, though, because even out of breath, it was Kalethis who took the initiative again and attacked him this time. Junre dodged but, admittedly, was taken off guard. 

He felt a bit ashamed of it and it affected his next actions. 

So he feinted a strike at the priest, who started to lift his staff to parry. But Junre saw it now and, suddenly, he lowered the sword with a swift movement. Kalethis didn't have time to react. The sword struck him flat in the leg and made him fall in the ground with a thud, surprise all over his face. People cheered around them, Kalethis' name being heard the loudest. 

That made Junre smile. Kalethis was very much appreciated in the Garrison.

Junre approached the priest on the floor and put his sword near his face in a mockery of a finishing move. Kalethis was breathing hard and still looked a bit shocked. Junre looked at him in the eyes, so golden, glinting, and saw he was angry but there was something more, something like… 

"You almost got me, Kale, but it takes more than that to do the trick." He smiled and noticed his own face was hot and he didn't know if it was still shame, the sight of Kalethis' eyes, or the flush of the battle. "You, on the other hand, got distracted in the end." 

He knew he was projecting, but still said it anyway. 

He extended his hand for Kalethis to take and he did. He flexed his arm and helped the priest get up, and with a sudden move, not being sure why he did it, pulled the priest near him. 

"But don't worry, you are good. You put up with me very efficiently until the end," he whispered to Kalethis' ear among the cheering, only for him to hear.

He let him go and he was sure Kalethis blushed hard this time and not only for the fight and tiredness and lack of breath. 

"Maybe I lost because you're attractive and I got distracted!" Kalethis suddenly said, a bit loud, annoyed. Then it was like he was aware of what he said and, yes, he blushed hard, both in shame and anger.

Junre couldn't help but laugh at the sudden burst of pride of the priest, and, considering his own thoughts before, it felt good to have them be reciprocated. 

"Well, thank you for that!" he said to Kalethis. 

Only a bunch of people heard the exchange and they laughed a bit and whispered, the mood much like the time they appeared together in Blackrock Foundry. And among them, Derek, who smiled wide, like a child with a new toy. 

Kalethis, now really conscious of the people around him, bowed to Junre, who bowed back and both shook the other's hand. 

"This was good and everything," said the priest, but it sounded a bit stiff. "But now I have work to do and I think I'm a little late, so, see you later, yes?" He smiled but Junre already thought something was out of place.

"Of course," he answered without saying anything more, unsure, but he let the priest go anyway who disappeared swiftly among the people. 

The crowd began to disperse then and Junre looked around, but Kalethis was gone. 

* * *

He thought he could wait up until dusk but at noon he was already too impatient. He had an anxious feeling and he couldn't set it aside, for he had hurt Kalethis' pride (all for his own hurt pride) and he had the need to set it right. 

At least if he could. 

Because he couldn't let their friendship go, not now. Not when, so far, it was the best thing that had happened to him in this distant land. 

He walked around the infirmary, looking for the priest. Lena took notice of him and she nodded sternly and pointed to the beds on the left. He approached and saw Kalethis speaking to an orc woman that was in bed. When the priest looked up and saw him, though, he could notice his first response was worried. 

He lifted one hand both as a greeting and in a conciliatory manner. Kalethis sighed and apologized to the woman. He then took a cloth to clean his hands and motioned for the Death Knight to follow him. 

They went out of the infirmary. Just behind the building, and out of the way of prying eyes, Kalethis sat on a discarded crate. Junre just stood in front of him, not sure of what to do. Kalethis looked nervous too. 

"About earlier," Junre began, because he wasn't someone who beat around the bush but plainly stated it. "I wanted to apologize. I shouldn't have done that… I got annoyed at you for being too good and I kind of wanted to teach you a lesson." 

Junre knelt beside Kalethis in the snow to look at him closer. 

"There was no need for that and I went too far. You were good, better than I expected," he continued, a dread feeling over Kalethis' silence. "I hope this doesn't affect our friendship." 

But Kalethis smiled and he actually looked relieved. That smile lifted the weight Junre had had over his shoulders. 

"I should apologize too." He sighed and he was playing nervously with the cloth still on his hands. "I also lost control, and got angry at myself and then I burst out and…" 

He let his breath out slowly, passed a hand over his hair, looked down. Junre put a hand on the priest's knee and squeezed. 

"Hey, don't, it's fine. As I said I deserved that and more," he said in a low voice. Kalethis tilted his head and looked at him with an apologetic smile. 

"I didn't actually help to keep the rumours down..." he said, mortified and bit at his lip. 

Junre couldn't help but chuckle. 

"Do not worry about that. Not that many people heard it I think…. Sadly, Derek did and he won't shut up--" 

Kalethis groaned at that, and Junre smiled. 

"We will cross that bridge when we get there," the Death Knight added, trying to sound reassuring. Kalethis sighed and nodded. 

"So… Are we good?" Junre asked, again, just to be sure. 

Kalethis put his hand on the one Junre still had on his knee and smiled and Junre thought about that dawn, again. 

"We are," he assured the Death Knight and his smile took an ironic aspect. "It seems we are a pair of too proud pricks but I think we are on our way to get over that." 

Junre smiled, honest, thankful, and they stayed there in companionable silence. But after a while Kalethis shivered and Junre noticed he was wearing only a shirt. 

"You are shivering," he stated. He got up and gave Kalethis a hand up. "You should go inside, now. I sense a pattern of you not looking up after yourself," he added trying to sound stern. 

Kalethis accepted his hand, chuckled, and got up. 

"I should say I would love a rematch, you know." He looked Junre in the eyes and he still hadn't let go of the Death Knight's hand. "But I think I need you to keep your shirt on then, because I may have been angry when I said that, but I was serious." 

Kalethis squeezed his hand, winked slyly to Junre and then left, leaving him speechless.

Junre shook his head and smiled secretly, for Kale maybe, or for himself, and he felt hopeful and felt alive.


End file.
